


Fireworks

by Scarlett_Ledger



Category: Rammstein
Genre: Cross-Posted on Mibba.com, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, New Years party, just cute and fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:40:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22063432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarlett_Ledger/pseuds/Scarlett_Ledger
Summary: For many, the new year brings the hope of a new start. Perhaps this time it will bring something even more special.
Relationships: Richard Kruspe/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 23





	Fireworks

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own anyone or anything famous or recognizable. I do own the plot and original characters. This is a work of pure Fiction. Please do not steal what I do own. Thank you.

Staring down at the freezing surface, Anika wondered for the second time that evening if going ice skating was such a good idea. She'd gone before as a little girl, but quite a few years had passed since then. More than enough to render the activity unfamiliar and a bit scary. They were running around a solid piece of ice on extremely sharp metal blades for goodness sake. It also didn't help that this would take place in one of the most public places you could get. New York. 

At least a few people were falling down. It was nice to know she wouldn't be the only one. 

"You'll be fine. I'll be with you the entire time, darling." 

Anika turned to the owner of the voice and the source of her so called troubles. Richard had been a good friend for years now and they often had trouble saying no to one another. While it brought about some interesting and often fun situations, it also brought forth more than a few anxiety inducing ones. And so far, this one was falling under the latter. 

"If I end up with bruises on my ass, it's your fault," she groaned. 

He flashed a dazzling smile her way. "And I will gladly rub salve onto that beautiful little butt of yours." 

She flushed a deep shade of pink and looked away while he chuckled. They weren't together by any means but that didn't stop them from teasing each other in various ways. But as he was quite fond of her blush, he often took things in a sexual direction. 

She'd yet to tell him to stop. And she probably never would. 

Over the course of their friendship Anika developed feelings for him. And some strong feelings at that. But in fear of ruining what would be a lifelong friendship, she never told Richard. She was fairly certain she wasn't exactly his type, even if those feelings were mutual. What she didn't know, of course, was that those feelings were reciprocated wholeheartedly. And as luck would have it, he had no idea she felt the same. 

Richard had attempted to drop several hints over the years that he liked her as more than a friend but she never seemed to notice. Unfortunately for him, Anika tended to be more than a little blind to flirting and hints. Even after the teasing and jokes started to become sexual in nature, she simply passed it off as Richard being himself. It wasn't like he didn't talk like that with the close friends he made over the years in the form of band mates. 

She'd heard more than she ever wanted to know during dinner with them all. Much to everyone's delight, especially Richard's, she spent the whole evening the shade of a tomato. 

"Just don't," Anika paused with a sigh, "just don't let me make too much of a fool of myself." 

His demeanor softened even more than it already was around her. He gripped her hand a little tighter as a way of reassurance before bringing it up to his lips and kissing the back of it. "Everything will be okay." He was beginning to feel more than a little guilty for asking her to go skating with him. 

"Alright. Let's do this." 

Their first steps onto the slippery ice were hesitant at best. They stuck close to the wall at first in order to build up confidence and to have something else to grab onto in case of falling. Eventually Richard was able to coax her further out onto the ice, though this would cause her to fall twice in the span of ten minutes. She glared and he laughed. This continued for the next hour. Thankfully there was more laughing than falling, though there was quite a bit of that too. 

After a particularly nasty fall, Anika decided to give up. And give her friend a small taste of his own medicine. “That's it. I’m done.”

Richard laughed and held out his hands, “you have to get up if you want off the ice. I can’t carry you.” No matter how much he wanted to. Perhaps he could attempt it off ice. And preferably close to a bed. 

She playfully rolled her eyes and grasped his hands, letting him start to pull her up. Halfway standing, she pulled back with all her might and they tumbled backwards, earning a hilarious squawking noise from Richard. Unfortunately the landing was awkward and not at all how she planned. Instead of ending up on her back, he ended up on his with Anika almost on top of him.

In any other situation that position would have been lovely. 

“Are you okay?” She asked with a slight laugh as she listened to him groan while attempting to proper herself up on her hand. 

“You are a tease,” he replied. “And I’m fine.”

A slightly painful thought occurred. One that should have popped up in her mind much sooner. “Is your back alright?” For some reason that didn’t factor into deciding on her little bit of revenge. 

He was silent for a moment while she reached up to tuck some hair behind his ear. He’d left it ungelled, per her request, this evening and it was just long enough to get in the way. “I think it’s fine.”

“You think it’s fine or you know it is?”

“We’ll figure that out when I get up.”

Anika frowned but took his words for what they were. Teasing. “My goal wasn’t to actually hurt you.”

“Hey now,” he murmured while lifting a hand to gently cradle her cheek in his palm and rub a roughened thumb along her cheek bone. “I’ll be alright.” A sly grin appeared, “And you’d be the first.”

She scoffed and lightly smacked his chest. It was more for affect and admonishment than to cause actual pain.”Don’t start that.”

Richard chuckled and continued stroking his thumb along her skin. His laughter soon turned into a contented hum when she leaned forward and rested her forehead against his, their eyes fluttering shut at the contact. They stayed like that for several minutes, happy and in their own little bubble despite the freezing ice beneath them. 

Their moment was soon interrupted by a throat clearing beside them. They quickly pulled away from one another and looked to their left to find a rather annoyed looking mother and her two children. 

“Have you no decency? There are children present!”

Surprise and disbelief quickly turned into laughter between the two friends. They stood up as quickly as they could and slowly made their way off the ice, all the while still laughing. 

“Did you see the look on her face?” Anika snickered. 

“I think that was the best part,” he chuckled. After taking a moment to calm down, he inclined his head towards a shop only a little ways away that sold coffee and hot chocolate. “How about we go warm up?”

She bit back a retort of exactly how she’d like him to warm her up and instead nodded her head. While she definitely had her moments, she wasn’t bold enough to actually tell him such things. At least not without the knowledge of his true feelings. 

Richard bought them both hot chocolate, despite her insistence that she could pay for her own, and walked her back to her hotel. Now that was a battle he lost. When he first found out Anika would be joining him in New York to celebrate the coming new year, he tried insisting on her staying at his apartment. The place was plenty big enough and there was no reason for her to spend who knows how much money at some hotel when he had a perfectly nice spare bedroom. 

While Anika greatly appreciated the offer, she knew there was no way she could stay in the same apartment, let alone a room just two doors down from his own, and keep her feelings hidden. It was too comforting and domestic and strangely intimate to keep everything at bay. As much as she wanted to stay, a hotel was a much better idea. She didn’t want to ruin things, after all. 

After parting for the time being, they began getting ready for the New Years party Richard would be hosting later. It would be a relatively small one with only close family and friends, but it still required dressing up. They were ringing in the new year, after all.

Several hours later saw Anika entering Richard’s apartment, having been let in by his eldest daughter, and silently searching for the host. She made small talk and greeted those she knew, which turned out to be almost everyone in attendance, until she finally found him. Dressed in an all black suit with several red accents, he looked positively handsome. 

“Well look at you,” Richard greeted his dear friend with a grin. He pulled her into a quick but firm hug before pulling away, slipping a hand into her own and carefully twirling her to show off her dress. A deep red number that ended at her knees and clung in all the right places. It also showed off a bit more than she was normally comfortable with but it was well worth it to see his eyes light up like a christmas tree. “I do believe I could eat you right up.”

She blushed and shook her head, resisting the urge to tease him about reusing his own lyrics as cheesy lines. “You look very handsome.”

“Thank you, Darling.” He gently kissed the back of her hand for that. And because he never got tired of the feeling of his lips on her skin. Or that beautiful blush of hers. “It looks like you haven’t gotten a drink yet.”

She shook her head and said, “I’m debating on whether or not I want one.” She tended to either hold off and wait to see if he would be drinking or deciding against it all together. Anika knew that her friend had all but stopped drinking with the exception of the shot of tequila he had with his band mates before a concert and special occasions. She always felt bad for drinking around him when he wasn’t.

Richard smiled and kissed her hand again, knowing exactly what she was doing. He greatly appreciated it but often felt bad that she was depriving herself of something she enjoyed for him. “Go ahead. I'm going to at least have some wine and maybe some champagne. I made sure to get your favorite.”

While she certainly wasn’t much of a champagne drinker, she definitely liked wine. “I suppose this is a special occasion then?”

He nodded and said, “It is the start of a new year.”

“Alright. Wine it is then.”

From there they migrated to the kitchen, stopping here and there to chat with those that were able to attend the party. To an outsider, they would have looked like the perfect couple greeting guests. They practically had matching outfits, for goodness sake! But their friends knew otherwise. No matter how much the majority were rooting for them to finally get together. 

Eventually the two arrived at the surprisingly empty kitchen. And it stayed that way the whole time they were in there. Little did they know that his two eldest children were keeping everyone out so they could have a moment to themselves. 

While Anika leaned against a counter top, Richard dug through the fridge for her favorite wine. 

“How’s your back?”

“A little twinge here and there but otherwise fine.” He saw no point in lying to her about it. She’d helped him through pain from it on numerous occasions when it randomly decided to start acting up again. 

“Should you be drinking then?” She asked hesitantly. While she trusted Richard not to mix pills and booze, that didn’t stop her from worrying over him or his safety.

A gentle smile was turned her way. “I’ll be fine, Darling. Don’t worry about that.” He sat a large bottle of wine beside her on the counter and grabbed two glasses from the cabinets to pour it into. 

“You spoil me,” Anika teased.”Letting me use the good glasses.”

He chuckled and shrugged. “You more than deserve my best.” And he wasn’t just talking about the glass. 

She flushed pink before she could even think to fight it. He was far too good to her. 

"What? No retort?" He teased. 

She shook her head and flushed a deeper color. 

He chuckled and kissed her forehead. It was times like these that he pondered over the possibility of her feeling the same way he did. True, it was easy to make her blush. But he had yet to see anyone get such a reaction from her to the extent that he did. Or the shy little smiles she gave from time to time. It was absolutely endearing in his eyes. 

"Would you like to toast now or later?" Anika asked after the silence between them began to linger a little too long. 

"How about now and again later?" He countered with a grin. 

She nodded and raised her glass of wine. “To a new year. I hope to always have you in my life.”

Richard raised his glass as well, “To a new year. And to always being together.” No matter what form that it takes, he mentally added. 

They drank together, eyes locked and pleasant smiles forming around the rims of their cups. Unfortunately the moment was broken by someone who didn’t want them to be disturbed in the first place. 

“Papa, Anika, I’m sorry to bother you but your guests are starting to wonder where you are. We held them off as long as we could.”

“Thank you, Sweetheart,” he murmured. “We’ll be back out in a minute.” At least his children approved. 

Anika smiled weakly up at him. “I’ve never wanted to not rejoin a party of yours more than I do right now.”

Richard nodded in agreement and said, “Maybe we can escape later.” It wasn’t often he said such things about a party, much less one he was hosting. But he enjoyed spending as much time with her as he could.

“I’d like that.”

The wine was put away and they rejoined the rest of the party. There was still a few hours left until midnight, though the night would pass by quickly. Drinks and conversation were had, laughter constantly filled the spacious apartment, and a warm, happy feeling flowed through everyone in attendance. 

The start of the new year would certainly be a happy one.

Throughout the night, Richard and Anika stole glances whenever they could. Be it across the room, over the shoulder in a casual manner or while standing together. Any chance they could lock eyes, they did. It was like a form of communicating. A silent promise they would sneak away soon. And eventually, they would. 

Minutes before the ball dropped and the real celebration began, Richard took her by the hand and led her to the balcony by his bedroom. Probably not the best spot, considering the freezing temperatures but they didn’t plan on staying out there for long. Just for a moment or two of peace. 

“Perhaps this wasn’t such a good idea,” Anika laughed while cuddling close. At least the cold gave her an excuse though. 

Richard grinned and pulled her closer while he spoke, “I’ll warm you up, Darling.” And in more ways than one.

“Mhmm,” she hummed. “I’m sure you could.”

He laughed and slipped off his suit coat, helping her slip into it and then brought her back up against his side, arms wrapping around one another in a firm hold. Before any more words could be said between them, an eruption of cheers could be heard all around them and fireworks lit up the sky in several places. 

Richard quickly checked his watch and then grinned down at her. “Happy new year.”

“Happy new year,” Anika replied with an equally large grin. 

He stared down at her, smile slowly fading as he began making up his mind. He knew this probably wasn’t a good idea but he still wanted to try. “I’m sorry if I upset you, Darling. But I’ve wanted to do this for so long.” Before she could so much as open her mouth to voice her confusion, he closed the short distance between them and pressed his lips to her own.

Shock coursed through her before it truly registered just what was actually happening. She was being kissed. On new years. By her dearest friend. Since it took her a minute to realize not only what was happening but also that it was real, by the time she figured it out he’d begun to pull away, afraid he’d over stepped. 

Anika quickly began kissing him back, hands raising to thread into the bottom of his hair, well aware of the gelled state of the rest of it. Richard’s relief was almost tangible. Not only was she kissing him back, but she was doing so enthusiastically. That was more than he could have hoped for. All too soon the need to breathe properly became apparent and they had to pull away, both panting and smiling. 

“How long,” Anika panted, “how long have you wanted to do that and why didn’t you do it sooner?”

Richard laughed breathlessly and shrugged. “Years. Most of our friendship. And I didn’t do anything because I was afraid of losing you. But what about you? You kissed me back so there must be something there for you as well.”

She flushed a dark pink, “The same reason as you. We have been friends for so long, I thought I would mess it up.”

“Well, I think it's safe to say we won’t be messing anything up,” he said, voice still holding a bit of caution.

“No. I think we’d only be improving our situation.”

“Oh? Is that what we are now, a situation?”

Anika laughed and pecked his lips, “Perhaps you could think of a better word for it?”

Richard chuckled and returned the kiss before saying, “I could think of a few things.”

To the start of the new year, indeed.

**Author's Note:**

> Last work of 2019! Iv'e still got about thirty minutes until midnight, so I finished it with just enough time. Originally I was going to do a little drabble and call it good but I just couldn't seem to stop writing. Hopefully you all like it just as much as I do. Happy New Year!


End file.
